Justification by faith from first to last

When was Abraham’s faith reckoned to him as righteousness? Those who know the scriptures are aware that there are several different references to God reckoning his faith as righteousness?

This is critical for our understanding justification by faith because Paul uses the life of Abraham as the primary example of God reckoning a man’s faith to him as righteousness.

So when was Abraham justified? In Genesis 15, he heard God’s promise, looked to the heavens and believed and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.

In Romans 4 we read -"he did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrennessb of Sarah’s womb. 20No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, 21fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. 22That is why his faith was "counted to him as righteousness.” This was much later than Genesis 15. Here Abraham’s faith is reckoned to him as righteousness after a long endurance, finally coming to the full assurance of faith.

We also read in James that Abraham was justified for what he did when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar in obedience to God. James wrote - "Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? 22You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; 23and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”””and he was called a friend of God. 24You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone."

So we have at least three different times recorded when Abraham’s faith was reckoned to him as righteousness. Faith is the common denominator, but the times and circumstances are unique.

Have we pondered why? Is there significance that Abraham’s justification is not a "singular” event? He is the perfect example of the righteousness of God being revealed - "from faith to faith”. He believed and was justified. He continued to believe and his faith was reckoned to him as righteousness. And near the end of his days, he obeyed and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.

He is our father in the faith, our example of "by grace through faith.”

I have been feasting on this meditation and I thought I would invite you to join me and share your thoughts and insights.

Dear Alan,

Thank you for this, which is an insightful illustration of Abraham's ongoing and lifetime Faith. Seems to illustrate that faith and belief has to be present and continuous reality if we want our righteousness with God to be present and continuous, which is what I understand the language of the NT teaches.

It seems funny how 'righteousness by faith' morphed in later times into 'you exercised faith once and now you are declared righteous for all time'!

"Faith justifies our souls, good works justify our faith."

Thomas Adam

Just because something is newly revealed and brought to greater clarity does not mean it did not already exist before. It just may not have been fully revealed as for example the church was revealed clearly for the first time in the New Testament. But does that mean it did not exist before? Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness. That is the exact same thing that happens when one becomes a believer and becomes part of the true born again believing church. And Abraham continued in faith the exact same way New Testament believers are enjoined to do. So my question is does Abraham being accounted righteous mean he was part of the believing church even back then? Did the church exist back then only later to be brought to clear light in the days of Christ and the apostles. Many people thoroughly and staunchly believe the church began at Pentecost. Perhaps the experience of Abraham shows us different. What do you think? That's a sincere question from me regarding this issue that still vexed me a bit. It's natural to assume the church began at Pentecost but Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness. How could the Holy Spirit not have been involved? Still scratching my head a bit.

"Did the church exist back then only later to be brought to clear light in the days of Christ and the apostles."

Yes.

Throughout the history of humanity there's been the Cains and the Abels, Jacobs and Esaus Judas' and Peters. One's father is the devil, the other's is God. There are children of the devil and there are children of God.

There's never been a time when God was without a people. You may call them by whatever name you like, but they have always been His people by possession.

Acts 7:35-38

This Moses whom they refused, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge? the same did God send to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the angel which appeared to him in the bush. He brought them out, after that he had shewed wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red sea, and in the wilderness forty years. This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear. This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us.

Note: '...the church in the wilderness...'

Thanks Dave, you wrote - "...Abraham's ongoing and lifetime Faith. Seems to illustrate that faith and belief has to be present and continuous reality if we want our righteousness with God to be present and continuous, which is what I understand the language of the NT teaches." end quote

This is also the treasure I have seen in Paul's writing. Abraham is the perfect example of how God credits His righteousness to men as a gift "by grace through faith."

From beginning to end, from faith to faith, righteousness is credited to men as a gift of grace. There is a beginning - "In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise." By grace through faith we were justified from sin and grafted into the root - Jesus Christ.

And like Abraham, our journey continues from faith to faith - "As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving." Just as we received the Spirit initially by the "hearing of faith", God continues to supply the Spirit and work His power among us through the hearing of faith." We cooperate with the Spirit in putting off the old man which is being corrupted according to deceitful lusts and we put on the new man created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we mortify the practices of the body as we continue to receive the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness. Through the grace our Lord makes to abound to us, we begin to reign in life through the life of our Lord being imparted to us "by grace through faith." We die to sin and begin to live unto righteousness - by grace through faith.

We continue in the faith by which we gained entrance into the grace wherein we stand. We don't boast over fallen men, because we remember what happened to the natural branches who were broken off because of their unbelief, and we realize that we are standing by faith. We consider both the kindness and severity of God, and by grace through faith we continue in His kindness so as not to be cut off. We also count God's longsuffering to be salvation for those branches who were broken off, because we know that if they do not persist in unbelief, they can be grafted in again.
God's grace to us through faith causes us to glorify our Father for His indescribable mercies.

Thus not only were we saved by grace through faith, but we are continuing to be saved from sin and from the coming wrath by His grace through faith. Now as those who partake of the divine nature, and compelled by such exceeding great and precious promises, we give all diligence to add to our faith virtue, knowledge, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness and love. By faith we do not want to forget that we have been cleansed of our past sins and we have no desire to become near sighted and blind. We cling to the promise by faith that if these things are in us and abound, they will keep us from being ineffective and unproductive in our knowledge of God. By faith we seek to make our calling and election sure.

This is the assurance that Paul the apostle of grace enjoyed even as he "beat his body and made it his slave, lest after having preached to others, he would become rejected." He knew His Lord was able to keep that he had committed unto Him. By grace through faith, Paul knew that he had fought the good fight, he had finished his course, he had kept the faith. By grace through faith, he was fully convinced that the Lord, the righteous judge was going to award unto him the crown of righteousness. He knew that by that same grace through faith he was first shown on the Damascus road, by that same grace through faith he had overcome.

This same grace through faith will be shown to all who have loved the appearing of our Lord. We too are to become strong in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and keep ourselves in the love of God as we abide by faith. We are to continue looking to Jesus to make ALL His grace to abound to us. It is always through His fullness we receive grace for even more grace.

Like Abraham we will have stumbled into our Ishmaels and Abimelechs. But even in this stumbling, the grace of our Lord Jesus continues to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness as we walk in the light in fellowship with Him.

I see in Abraham, the friend of God, that by faith he was being justified throughout his journey with God. By faith and endurance he obtained the promise of God, the promise he began to receive by grace through faith and against all hope in hope believed unto the full assurance that God had power to do what He had promised - and for this his faith was reckoned to him as righteousness. He is truly the father of us all.

Abraham's example shows me that Paul was not focusing his thoughts upon "when" Abraham was justified, but the "WAY" he was justified - by grace through faith unto faith.

Abrahams faith could do nothing except believing the chair will hold him when he sits on it.

Abrahams faith was completed by God's works and Abrahams works shown forth that completing work of God unto Abrahams Faith.

Ephesians 2:1-10 You were made alive when you were dead in transgressions and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the powers of the air, the spirit who now works in the children of disobedience; among whom we also all once lived in the lust of our flesh, doing the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, for his great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with him, and made us to sit with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus; for by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, that no one would boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared before that we would walk in them.

Whose Grace, Whose Faith, Whose works wrought in us?

It was God not Abraham that that counted the righteous of God in Abraham because it was God's righteousness.

Now we know the mystery of righteousness, for Christ has been made our righteousness which is now birthed in us by the Plan of God the Father through God the Son we are counted righteous, not only counted but made righteous by the Christ in us.

1 Corinthians 1:29-31 That no flesh should glory in his presence. But of Him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.

I will glory in Gods Faith by the Faith of Jesus Christ in me and in Abraham not of him but of God by His completing Faith wrought in Abraham by Gods works as in our works by the Christ in us the Hope of Glory.

Who is made unto us righteousness? The process of God never changing, but completed on the Cross by the Son Jesus Christ who is now the Head of the Church the Body of Christ.
Amen and Amen: This mystery now revealed to the Church.
Of which Paul speaks loud and clear.

Colossians 1:25-29 Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God; Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: Whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily.

Whose works?
In Christ: Phillip

Abraham's example shows me that Paul was not focusing his thoughts upon "when" Abraham was justified, but the "WAY" he was justified - by grace through faith unto faith.

Excellent!

Paul shows us clearly in Romans 4 that the "way" is by promise, faith and grace which always go together. You cannot take the promise away without faith and grace also disappearing. Over against these stand law, works (that is, transgressions) and wrath. These also always go together.

Either you have the promise with faith and grace, or you have the law with transgressions and wrath. The one excludes the other. If you come with the law, you exclude the promise, and so meet not grace but wrath, for under the law faith is made void and the promise is made of no effect.

Paul is really saying that God does not act where there is a human possibility of accomplishing a given objective, but becomes active when all such possibility has ceased to be. Humanly speaking there are no grounds for hope, since the promise is impossible to man, but in truth this is where hope begins for the man of faith who is looking away to the God of the impossible. This is the "way" of life in Christ.

In Christ,

"Whose faith is it” is easily answered by answering the following question - Whose unbelief is it?

If men are held accountable for their unbelief, on what basis is their unbelief sinful and liable to judgment? If it is God’s faith, not men’s - whose
"unbelief” is it?

o 1:17
For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.
Ro 3:3
For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect?
Ro 3:22
Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:

Unbelief came by rebellion not faith thereof. Therefore the question of the Faith of God given to the believer unto wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption, this Faith if of God not of man but of and in and through Jesus Christ.

Galatians 3:22-24 But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe. But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.

Who's Faith given?

Rebellion has separated me from the ability to attain the Faith that saves, I am accounted for unbelief through rebellion and am now of my father the devil. Saving Faith from Jesus Christ by the Father has now given me the Faith of Jesus Christ given to them that believe.

Our faith unto Jesus Christ and salvation is a gift, a fruit of the Spirit. Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Ephesians 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

How do I now live? Galatians 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

I could go on and on, but my Holy Faith which is given me by God to believe that Jesus Christ is My God and Savior and the Father has made me a son by the Son that is in me and a fellow heir with Jesus Christ, my faith given by the Holy Spirit is my all and in all, Jesus Christ my God, Brother and Savior. Amen

In Christ: Phillip

When Abraham is declared righteous by faith, it is called 'his' (Abraham's) faith, or "Abraham believed".

Also there are many accounts of Jesus saying, "your faith has made you well".

I don't think you can build a case for 'faith' not belonging to the individual. I agree that faith has an origin, which is God, but He is also the object of our faith. Faith comes from hearing the word of God, but becomes our faith when we act on it.

We can over complicate 'faith'. I think put simply, faith is to trust and obey who God is and what He says.

Ron Bailey, who used to frequent these forums, had a wonderful definition of faith that he liked to use, I believe that it went something like this;

Faith is right response to revelation.

In Christ,

I agree that we all receive Faith from God.

Heb 12:2- looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith,

It is not that I who was raised as an unbeliever, suddenly started believing in Jesus by my own work. No Jesus found me and put his faith in me. But Jesus also is the perfecter of my faith. Which means that my faith is not perfect yet, it has to be made strong and perfect.

In acts we read about Stephen as,
Acts 6-8 And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people.

So there is fullness of faith that was found in Stephen. There were also times when Jesus rebuked the disciples for their little faith. So there is a measure for faith.

Romans 12:6 - If someone’s gift is prophecy, let him use it in proportion to his faith.

I believe God wants us to increase in faith by putting our faith in practice when our faith is tested.

So Abraham had faith and he also increased in faith by obeying God when his faith was put to test. I believe this is what meant by the scripture from faith to faith we grow.

Romans 1:17- For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH."

Human faith is not the gift of God.
Human faith is not capable of doing what God has required of faith "obtaining Christ".
Human faith is still a slave to sin, it must be a slave because when God regenerates a man by the Spirit of God he 'then' can see the kingdom of God, where it is revealed to him. If you have only human faith Jesus wont commit himself to you. See Jn 2:23 Now when he was in Jerusalem at the passover, in the feast day, many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did.
24 But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men,
25 And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man.

Where do we see a picture of men testifying of Jesus but were not born of God and had not the gift of faith to see the kingdom or know the truth about Jesus?
John 3 in his dealings with Nicodemus.

Nicodemus had human faith, he could testify of Jesus miracles and could see the power of God and could see there was something powerful and wonderful about Jesus...but as we read about Nicodemus we read what it was where Jesus "didn't commit himself unto them".
Jesus didn't commit himself unto Nicodemus, nor to the rich young ruler, nor to those who need to bury their dead or cannot abide living as Jesus in an ordinary way.
The gospels are replete with parables and examples of people who want Jesus but don't want to follow him according to his command.
Why was it that Jesus didn't commit himself to them?
Because to be a true disciple you must be 'given' Jesus by the Father. You don't just take Jesus when you want, if you want and however you want.
It is the working of God for true conversion and biblical regeneration by the Spirit of God.

Human faith gives place to human repentance and human justification and human sanctification and in the end doom. For everyone that thinks they have the faith on their own, the repentance God requires on their own must needs fail and God designs them to fail.

Be pleased with God's gift of faith because the opposing 'unbelief' is ours by reason of our sinful hearts and alienation from God...we are dead in sins and unbelief is the fruit of it. We own unbelief intrinsically, but God given faith we do not own or receive at birth, faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.

If you put your trust in being born of God by human ability to believe, then you have no right to become the sons of God. John 1:11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not.
12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

The 'right to become a son of God' is given because God himself birthed him of his own will, not ours.

Sree and Marvin

Words of truth, praise God and Amen.

Marvin can you help me reconcile John 1:12 and 2:23&24?

Thank you for the fresh air of truth.

In Christ: Phillip

I am truly trying to understand what you are attempting to explain, but the passage you quoted states that Jesus gave the authority to become sons of God to those who had already received him. He did not give them the ability to receive him, he gave authority to those who had received him.

I know that it is BY GRACE -through faith, so I can see the reason to lay the stress upon God’s grace enabling men to believe. Jesus IS the grace of God and the words He spoke and the signs He did "enabled” many to believe - and this without having the Holy Spirit, for the Spirit was not yet given since Jesus was not yet glorified. Yet many "believed” in Him because of hearing and seeing Him.

Many others did not believe. Are you saying that those who did not believe after hearing and seeing Jesus were not able to believe because God did not give them faith? All the people encountered the grace of God when they encountered Jesus. He is the grace of God. He came to His own and His own received Him not, but as many as received Him TO THEM HE GAVE. The scripture does not say, He gave to them and they received Him.

I believe men have a God given capacity to hear and believe. Faith comes by the thing heard - the message itself is spirit and life. It is not too difficult, the word is near you.

Unbelief is "evil” because it is refusal to believe. The Greek word for disobedience is a form of "pietho” the verb for to persuade. The idea of this word is refusing to be persuaded.

I have appreciated the discussion as it has challenged me to search the scriptures to consider this matter again.

If you are saying no one can believe unless God gives that person the ability to believe, then please explain whether or not you believe that God offers the gift of faith to ALL MEN.

Thanks

Hi Mak: thanks for responding.

I am saying God is the author of or faith, we are not our own authors. Human faith does not accept the word of God for transformation because human faith is still linked in-separably to the human will.

It's important to understand who is working in us before we come to Christ. Since it is God who gives faith Eph 2, and repentance Rom 2, God gives the Spirit Eph 1 he does all of this because he has an elect that he has chosen for himself.
Since man cannot 'will himself' born of God
John 1:12, he is at the mercy of God who will bring into Christ all that he has chosen.
When we discuss topics like this and omit the Sovereign electing grace of God, we are saying "God's choosing is because we chose first"; this is an error, God is the author of our faith, God is the grace giver on account of his own plan and purposes. Eph 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,

Since our spiritual blessings originated in heaven, Paul explains that it was in Christ before the foundation of the world his choosing us to salvation brings to us all spiritual blessings, it brings to us our conversion, regeneration, reconciliation, righteousness, justification and sanctification...and finally our glorification.
What God has provided was provided to us long before we made any decisions to believe, tears of repentance or confessions of sin and faith in the resurrection.
We are the children he chose, the people he elected, the lost sinners that he determined to reveal grace and kindness to us through Jesus Christ.

Our salvation is not hinged upon human faith, but upon God's divine will to bring his word to us, give us faith, give us repentance and reveal Christ to us. Our love is what his grace and kindness produces, what we are is not the product of human anything. God left the cults, liars, false teachers and prophets to make for themselves disciples that will follow them, serve them and abide by their word. Those kind need no divine agency, they serve with human faith, human strength and human ability.
Christianity functions on God's power to transform rebels into willing servants and sons. Christianity regenerates the heart, it does not simply add new but relaxed rules to the same old game.

Unbelief for the sinner is intrinsic because he is dead in sins and trespasses, he is alienated in his mind by wicked works. His faith, is nothing more than a moral improvement, a turning over of a new leaf. He cannot come to Christ anymore than Nicodemus could come to Jesus...because at the heart of Nicodemus faith was unbelief.

Jesus goes to great lengths to explain that salvation is the gift of God, it is not the product of human 'willing to believe'.

When people encountered Jesus, they encountered both man and God, they encountered a man who was fully submitted and consecrated to do the will of God at all costs.
People didn't encounter grace when they met Jesus, they encountered God's chosen man. It is from God's chosen man that Jesus would extend grace, kindness, healing and deliverance. In a philosophical way, you can say Jesus is the personification of grace, but you can say he is equally the personification of the law as well.

Our salvation from beginning to end is all of grace. Our faith, our righteousness and sanctification are all of grace. This grace didn't activate upon the act of human faith, it was given purely out of God's own goodness that he will bestow on whom ever he will. rom 9:15 For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
16 So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.

Israels salvation and the gentiles grafting are all due to God's own appointing.

Are we making the gospel call nullified because God will not give faith to all? We are not, because we are not charged with saving anyone, we are charged with declaring the saving grace of God as it appears in Jesus Christ.
It would not matter if only 8 people were saved, we take note from Noah, he was faithful and God saved all that he would save.

I recognize many do not like a God that choses them before they chose him, but if you are going to believe scripture you must submit yourself to God's sovereign will and purpose.

We are very fond in our culture to magnify the will of man and exalt it above all that call itself God. God has no sympathy for our cultural proclivities that have intermixed in our doctrines.
Our evangelism is all about declaring the gospel of Jesus Christ and we do so because God has a chosen people and because God has determined to bring them to Christ and show his lovingkindness to them. This is the basis for evangelism. It is God's calling through out the whole world and those whom he has chosen will hear and they will receive power, they will believe, they will repent and they will glorify God in their lives.

I have no faith in the faith of man, I have faith that God will give faith upon entry of his powerful word and bring a transformation...a conversion because God worked in that heart.

I hope this clarifies my position.

Thanks for the thoughtful questions.

Hi Marvin,

John 1:29 ”“ The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

1 John 2:-2 -- and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world.

John 3:16-17 -- For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.

Salvation is for the WHOLE WORLD and NOT the chosen few.

Hi Jade:

You will encounter many difficult problems believing Jesus came to save the 'whole world'.
First of all there has always been an elect people, there has always been a chosen few.
You know yourself that "few are chosen" I didn't say that, Jesus did. So when Jesus says that, people who believe after your manner, they must reverse the text to mean
"few have chosen him". Many are called and the gospel is to be declared through out the world, but as I said earlier, God does the choosing, he does the electing.

The salvation we have all received is due to God's divine will and purpose. It was not us who determined all spiritual blessing would be granted us in Jesus before the foundations of the world.

From the beginning, God has chosen his own.
I get it that people do not like the idea that God didn't chose some folks.
But if you think even for just a few minutes about the reality of this world, multitudes' of millions and millions have died not hearing the gospel. Countless multitudes have only had some smidgen of knowledge about Jesus and died in their sins. Was God lacking power to send them a missionary? Was God negligent to save the heathen? Was God uncaring to leave whole tribes and nations to rot from paganism and sin without any chance of hearing the good news of redemption?
Where was the Church 100 years ago? Where was it 400 years ago, Where was it a 1000 years ago? God does with his people as he pleases and sends whom he will send and orchestrates the salvation of those whom Christ died to redeem.
If God is truly sovereign and truly almighty and truly loving and all wise, we have no other reason for their lostness in that God had not chosen them to salvation.
Jesus will lose nothing, he will receive all that the Father will give him.
You can blame the Church, you can blame God, you can disbelieve there is any chosen or any elect, those are just vague unknown bible terms for 'our choosing God'. But that answers nothing, it misrepresents God and in the end it says "Well God you sure brought forth a lot of creation that you didn't want to keep eternally".

After you say that, let the countless billions who lived in paganism before Christ and died outside any faith or knowledge of God and you will get a picture that many do not want to see...A God who has chosen a people for himself, a gospel that was designed to save that people, a heaven made for that people, a grace given to that people.

It's not a man-made salvation we have obtained, it's not a man-contrived 'elect' that becomes so because I joined the Christian group.

Truth is, God has saved a people for himself and it may seem unfitting that God would not save all, but we have 6000 years of history where God has not saved all and has never in all those years proven an intent to save all.

One cannot argue that 'mans will' got in the way. But it didn't stop him from saving you! Are we better than other sinners before us? Did we have something another sinner didn't have?

The scriptures that teach God's choosing and election are too numerous, to expansive and the scriptures do not hide any of it. Unfortunately the doctrine has been neglected, God's will, purpose, plans, choosing, electing are relegated to some hateful Calvinist invention, therefore it is dismissed as if it is from some cult.
Because of this, many will never confront the difficult problem that I am saved and chosen of God and yet others are not...and it put fear in me and no doubt others, that God did something so great for me and would not do it for someone else. What kind of God is this?

At that point, I must learn and accept God is more fearful than I previously imagined, he makes decisions not based on anything I can figure out, he calls men to judgment whom he birthed into the world for a purpose only for this temporal world and not for the eternal glorious world to come.

This is the God I meet in scripture.

Marvin,

So how do you explain away the scriptures I quoted?

And how do you explain away this:

1 Tim. 2:3-4 (Young’s Literal Translation) -- …… God our Saviour, who doth will all men to be saved, and to come to the full knowledge of the truth;